Like most Americans, I received my 2014 healthinsurance benefits package this month. I was shocked… just shocked… that my healthinsurancepremiums did not drop by $2,500 like Obama had campaigned on. I really, really thought that when the government mandated coverage of everything under the sun, that my prices would drop for all of these new “free” services. Instead, my premiums rose again for the third straight year. As Obama might say “promise kept.” (Iinsert my best John Stewart smirky look to make sure you know I’m being sarcastic face here.)

Highlights of the 2014 plan is that Obamacare now requires 100% coverage of smoking cessation drugs. Is quitting smoking something that should be insured? More-so, is it something that I, as a non-smoker, should be forced to pay for? Like always, this brings up the conversation of what exactly healthinsurance plans should cover. It seems crazy all of the things that “insurance” is mandated to cover now. And of all the things that are covered, how come the one thing I could actually take advantage of – a gym membership – is not one of them? Given that obesity is such a major problem in the United States, it makes as much sense to pay people to lose weight as it does to pay people to quit smoking.

While I’m not actually advocating gym memberships be covered, it would at least be nice to use my new and costlier insurance for something other than waiting around to get hit by a car. Everyone else is getting something for “free” they normally used to pay for…

Vet March in Washington and a Look at the Debt Ceiling Battle

So we are heading into our third week of the Great Government Shutdown of 2013.

The World hasn’t ended.

Everyone is less popular (Republicans, Democrats, and President Obama.)

Twitchy has coverage of the Veterans March in Washington where veterans and conservatives met to demonstrate at the “closed” open-air Memorial. Of course, the spiteful closing made our list in our Week 1 Highlights/Lowlights of the Government Shutdown. Protesters and veterans are seen removing the barricades and some even brought them back to the White House. Mike Lee, Ted Cruz, and Sarah Palin were all on hand.

Complicating matters with the shutdown, the nation is now soon to run out of money and Obama is demanding an increase in the debt ceiling, something he once called a “failure in leadership.” Of course, that’s when President Bush was still in charge. If the government runs out of money and the debt ceiling is not raised, the government will be forced to spend only what it takes in through tax receipts. They might actually have to prioritize and set a budget. In other words, we expect a debt ceiling deal this week, because who sees that happening?